BOOSTING CYBER CAPABILITY. Navy flag-officer-in-command, Vice Adm. Giovanni Carlo Bacordo (right), and Synetcom Philippines Inc. president and CEO Dennis Luyahan (left), sign a memorandum of agreement (MOA) in a ceremony at the Navy headquarters in Manila on Wednesday (July 8, 2020). Under the agreement, the IT firm will assist the Navy in boosting its cyber capability. (Photo courtesy of Naval Public Affairs Office)
MANILA – The Philippine Navy (PN) and an information technology (IT) firm on Wednesday signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) aimed at boosting the PN's cyber-capability and its reservist ranks.
Navy chief, Vice Adm. Giovanni Carlo Bacordo, and Synetcom Philippines Inc. (SPI) president and chief executive officer Dennis Luyahan signed the MOA in the presence of key officials from both entities at the PN headquarters, Naval Station Jose Andrada, Roxas Boulevard, Manila.
Under the MOA, SPI will become a part of the PN Affiliated Reserve Unit (PNARU).
In a statement, Lt. Commander Maria Christina Roxas, PN public affairs office chief, said the MOA will be eventually endorsed for the approval of Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana.
Bacordo, meanwhile, called the MOA with SPI "very timely".
"The Navy has been developing and improving our Reservist Utilization Plan in the Conflict Continuum, something I think is very relevant as we increase our operational readiness during peace time and our warfighting readiness during crisis," he added.
He also lauded SPI for volunteering in military service "without expecting anything in return" and described it as "a true act of service."
SPI is a privately owned company engaged in the distribution of IT products and several information and communications technology (ICT) systems, which provide technical expertise and design other solutions that can complement in developing a robust cyber-capability.
With its technical expertise on information and communications technology, SPI will be a significant addition to the current efforts of the PN in building up its cyber-warfare capability. (PNA)
